Farmers’ Markets Are Back!

It’s that time of year again – farmers’ markets are back! Lettuces, kale, swiss chard, pea greens, radishes, strawberries – there’s lots of early spring produce, especially with greenhouse grown vegetables. You can also get locally raised eggs, meat, and poultry, fresh-baked goods, honey, locally produced cheeses, local wine, potted plants and herbs, handcrafted soaps and lotions, and artisanal items. Every week it’s something different.

Freitas Farm

Advantages of Locally Grown Food

The average food travels 1500 miles from farm to plate, consuming large quantities of fossil fuels and generating major CO2 emissions. Produce is picked unripe, then gassed to ripen, or processed using preservatives or irradiation, losing important nutritional value. With farmers’ markets, food is grown locally, eliminating all those CO2 emissions. Produce is usually grown organically without chemicals or using sustainable farming practices. It’s picked at peak ripeness and is fresh and nutritious. There is nothing tastier than a vegetable or fruit straight from the farm.

Photo by: Wikipedia

When you shop at a farmers’ market, you are supporting local farmers and the local economy. The farmer sells directly to the customer and middlemen are eliminated. The money stays in the local economy and the farmer gets more of his profits.

Connect with the Farmers Who Grow Your Food

In this era of prepackaged foods, there is little direct connection to our food. At a farmers’ market, you meet and get to know the people who grow your food and they get to know the people who eat the food they grow.

Farmers’ Markets Foster Community

Farmers’ markets bring the community together; they are a place for neighbors and friends to connect and a place to meet new people. Participating local musicians, food trucks, art shows, and children’s activities make food shopping a real event.

Ours is open year round, I just found that out. Love going each week to try new things and seeing new products. We are starting to visit neighboring farmers markets too as they each have something different to share.